Staff Biographies

Bob Spiotto
Artistic Director, Community Arts Programs
Executive Producer, Hofstra USA Productions

Bob Spiotto holds a B.F.A. in theater from Hofstra University and an M.F.A. in directing from The Catholic University of America. He is celebrating his 20st anniversary at Hofstra University and is currently the artistic director of community arts programs and a producer of special events for the Hofstra Cultural Center, as well as the executive producer for Hofstra Entertainment – displaying the depth and diversity of his creative talent. Bob has also served on the faculty of Hofstra University Continuing Education. He also serves as entertainment producer for Hofstra's International Festivals (Dutch, Italian, Irish) and has received awards from Hofstra for distinguished service and teaching accomplishments.

Bob has worked as a director, producer, actor, choreographer and teacher in the New York and Washington, D.C., metropolitan areas, as well as abroad for the USIA.  Locally, his credits have taken him from Manhattan to Montauk.  At Hofstra alone he has been involved in hundreds of events and/or productions/presentations since 1990. Hofstra directing credits include Night of January 16th, the world premiere of the musical review I’m The Greatest Star, the New York premiere of Rachel and Julio starring Lainie Kazan and Robert Davi, The Remembered  (world premiere), Agnes of God  (starring Talia Shire and Susan Sullivan), Neil Simon’s Rose’s Dilemma , Lo Bianco’s La Guardia (world premiere starring Tony Lo Bianco), Hello, Dolly!, I Do!, I Do!,The Melody Lingers On: The Songs of Irving Berlin, The Vagina Monologues (2001, 2002, 2003), The Sound of Music, Barrymore (Long Island premiere), Fiddler on the Roof, The Sunshine Boys, and Sarah in America (starring Tovah Feldshuh) to name a few. Regional acting credits include imaginative and passionate performances as M.C. (Cabaret), John Adams (1776), Guido (Nine, the musical), Tateh (Ragtime), The Cat in the Hat (Seussical), Fagin (Oliver!), Ganesha (A Perfect Ganesh), Jim (Pump Boys and Dinettes), Bill (Me and My Girl) and Clov (Endgame). For more than three years Bob also appeared as “The King of Pizza,” based on the delightful children’s book.

Additionally, Bob has created and appeared in numerous one-man shows exploring the lives and works of Sholom Aleichem, Giuseppe Garibaldi, Alexander Pushkin, Primo Levi, Michelangelo, P.T. Barnum, and composer Harry Warren and most recently created and appeared to sold out houses in Shades of Grey: A musical tribute to Joel Grey. Bob has also appeared throughout Long Island in his one-man musical show Courting the Jester: A Salute to Danny Kaye, which had its premiere at Hofstra in 2001 and was reworked and presented at Lincoln Center in New York City in 2003 and continues to tour locally. Bob was appointed by former New York Governor George Pataki to serve on the board of directors of the New York State Theater Institute, and locally he serves on the Long Island Arts Council Advisory Board.

He is the recipient of the Dante Award from the American Association of Teachers of Italian for his contributions to Italian-American culture and was honored by the New York State Commission for Social Justice.  Bob received the George M. Estabrook Distinguished Service Award from the Hofstra University Alumni Association and was recognized as a “winner” in Newsday’s community section. In addition, Bob currently serves on the board of the National Organization for Women’s Safety Awareness (NOWSA).  Often sought out to be a part of new community endeavors and serve as master of ceremonies at various events, Bob was recently selected by the Town of Oyster Bay’s Arts Council to serve as keynote speaker for its Celebration of the Arts Recognition Dinner, asked to serve as master of ceremonies for the LI Arts Council at Freeport’s 2010 Arty Party, and was recently honored by the Long Island Breakfast Club at their ‘Evening in Tuscany’ event.

Contact Bob at:
John Cranford Adams Playhouse
118 Hofstra University, Room 301
Hempstead, NY 11549-1180
tel: (516) 463-5042
fax: (516) 463-6132
E-mail